Animals are most often confined behind a pen wall, fence or similar confining barrier. It is desirable to be able to provide feed from the opposite side of the pen wall so that the person feeding does not have to enter the pen, thereby disturbing the animals and providing opportunities for escape, possible injury to the person or animals, and so forth.
Feeders for attachment to a pen wall, fence or other barrier are known wherein the feed is put in at the top from the outside of the barrier and is accessible to the animals on the inside thereof. "Lazy Susan" type feeders are also known wherein the feeder pivots on a vertical axis in a barrier wall so that the top may be pivoted so as to be more easily accessible from the outside of the barrier for filling.
The prior art feeders generally require that feed be raised to a height that is over the average person's head for filling, resulting in spillage and discomfort for the person filling the feeder.
It is desirable to provide a lid over the feeder to prevent the animal from reaching over the top of the feeder for feed instead of feeding from the feed aperture, thereby drawing out big pieces of hay which drop to the floor and are wasted. The lid also prevents entry of rain, birds and other foreign material. Prior art feeders either do not have such lids, or require that the lids be removed and set aside in order to fill the feeder.
Feeders must be cleaned periodically, usually requiring their removal from the barrier so that they may be inverted to dump out the cleaning water and so forth as well as left over feed.
A feeder that allowed for convenient filling and the proper feeding height for all animals would be beneficial. Such a feeder that had a more convenient lid and was easily cleaned would be further beneficial.